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Lost dog: Have you seen Hazel?

Hazel’s owner considers her a member of the family. She rescued the two-week-old puppy, and her littermates, from under an abandoned mobile home. Sadly, Hazel was the only one that survived. Her new owner lovingly bottle fed her and the tiny puppy thrived.

Hazel never forgot the kindness bestowed on her. Time flies, she’s now nearly 15-years-old. The dog grew up alongside the owner’s children, who now have children of their own. Hazel loves “her” grandkids so much that she was banished from the swimming pool after repeated attempts to “rescue” them while they were learning to swim. Could watching over the children be Hazel’s way of repaying her owner for saving her life?

Hazel requires a special diet and medicines to treat life-threatening allergies and a heart murmur. Her owner reports that if the dog is allowed to drink water freely she’ll develop bloat, an extremely painful condition that can potentially be deadly if veterinary intervention isn’t sought quickly. If you find Hazel do not feed her. Do not use food to lure her to you or give her unlimited access to water. Please contact her family immediately if you see her.

Hazel was last seen near Tharpe Street and Blountstown Road on Saturday, Dec. 30. Her owner notified the shelter and visits regularly to look for her. She contacted both Northwood Animal Hospital and Allied Veterinary Emergency Hospital, the two 24-hour emergency veterinary clinics in town, knowing that a Good Samaritan may take her to an after-hours clinic to be scanned for a microchip if she’s found when the shelter is closed.

Since Hazel has health conditions that may prompt the finder to seek veterinary care if she exhibits symptoms, her family has taken fliers to several of the clinics near where she went missing. They’re expanding this to include all of the veterinary clinics in the Tallahassee area in case the finder takes Hazel to their personal vet, who may be in a different part of town. There are fee-based services that claim to email fliers to local veterinarians. It’s best to hand-deliver fliers in person, rather than by email, which has a very low open rate. The family will leave two fliers at each clinic. One for the waiting room where a client may recognize her from the photo. They’ll ask to have the second copy posted near the employee time clock, or in the break room, where the staff will see her photo regularly. Hopefully an employee will recognize her if she’s brought to the clinic.

If you have seen Hazel, or have any information that would help her family find her, please call/text them at 850-727-6700. For more info, additional photos, or to contact her family directly: http://www.helpinglostpets.com/petdetail/?id=2124112. Learn more about lost pets at www.LostDogsFlorida.org. Visit our partner, www.HelpingLostPets.com , to view a free map-based, searchable database of lost/found pets and create free fliers.